16 Wednesday, June 10, 1992 Rebels get their man Local KIJHL franchise ends specualtion by naming Gordie Walker their new head coach Jonathan Green SPORTS REPORTER Like the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Castlegar Rebels went out and got their man. The KIJHL franchise made what many expected official last Tuesday, as they named Castlegar native Gordie Walk- er head coach for the upcom- ing hockey season. Outgoing team president Russ Rilcof said Walker had been the team’s No. 1 choice for the job, it was just a matter of timing. “Gordie didn’t want it offi- cially done until early June,” he said. “He couldn’t commit himself until this time.” Walker took over the Rebels in January after Kevin Chel- dave left for personal reasons. Under Walker, the Rebels showed new life, winning three straight, and four of their last 11 before being swept by Nelson in the play- offs. At season’s end, Walker said his future with the Rebels hinged on how things went for him in the construction busi- ness in the off-season. With that taken care of, Gordie Walker Walker has his sights set on the kind of team he is looking to ice for the 1992-93 season. “I’m looking for young kids,” he said. “I’m hoping to get them to come here and play.” Walker said with minor. hockey registration decreas- Bee gD ood ing, a youth movement would so some good for area hockey. “I think the fans would like to see some 16 and 17-year- olds who have a chance (at a hockey future),” he said. “I think it would help minor hockey.” Rilcof said ex-NHLer Walk- er’s hockey background is a tremendous. asset to the Rebels. “Tt was always hoped a fel- low of his calibre would be in- terested in coaching the Rebels,” he said. “Gordie has shown right from the word go he seems to have a flair for coaching.” Also last Tuesday, the Rebels named Maynard Fauth as their new general manger, ” replacing Don Joice. Although he wouldn’t go in- to detail, Rilcof said the team has a candidate in mind to fill the last open executive postion of president. “We're just waiting for the official word from the person who has expresed interest in the job,” he said, adding that he hopes to make an an- nouncement shortly. ees Big @ Cellar dweller’s coach awaiting playoffs NEWS STAFF Although his team sits fifth in the five-team Castle- gar Men’s Commercial Fast- ball League, Pete Evdoki- moff remains optimistic. “We're gearing up for the playoffs,” he said. Evdokimoff’s Big O Tire team recently passed the midway point of the 24-game regular season sporting 2-13 record, leaving them a good seven points behind fourth place Banjo’s Pub. With nine games remain- ing in the schedule, Evdoki- moff said the standings are not indicative of how his team has played. He said that, given a few breaks, Big O Tire would be a little closer to the four teams ahead of them. “On any given day, any one could be fifth out of the five teams,” he said. Monday, Big O was swept O Tire looks ahead to post-season action league leading Nelson A’s, 1- . we didn’t,” he said, not tak- in a double-header by the 0 and 6-1. Evdokimoff said game one was very similar to several others earlier in the season. “They got the breaks and ing anything away from the other teams. “Full marks to those that beat us. No doubt about that.” - Defensively, the team sits in the middle of the league, something Evdokimoff is happy with. Offensively, the team batting average hovers around the .220:mark, some- thing he’s less than enthused about. “We're working hard to improve that,” he said. With the playoffs sched- uled to begin in late July, Evdokimoff said the team is looking ahead to “the second season.” “We'll set our sights and see how far we can go.” News photo by Jonathan Green The Castlegar RCMP continued their domination of the Robson River Otters’ celebrity relay Sunday when they won for the fourth straight year. Local RCMP a dynasty in swim club’s annual relay “M@ Wednesday, June 10, 1992 178 @ Local men’s soccer team scores big in victory, not at all in defeat Devils looking like Dr. Jekyl, Jonathan Green SPORTS REPORTER The scoring touch the Castlegar Hi Arrow Devils had displayed of late was nowhere to be found Satur- day at Kiwanis Park. Up against the league’s top team, Nelson Savoy, the Devils failed to generate any offence and dropped a 1-0 de- cision. In two previous games, the team had shelled opposing keepers with 12 goals in matches against Trail and Fruitvale. But on Saturday, the Dev- ils fell behind early and nev- er got the equalizer, and coach Carlos Amaral knows why. “The problem is our team played a poor game,” he said. “It was the worst I’ve seen us play.” The outcome was indica- tive of how the Devils have played through the first six games of the regular season. When they win, they score a Mr. Hyde lot , but when they lose, they don’t score at all. In their three wins, they have outscored the opposi- tion 17-6. In the three losses, though, they have been outscored 4-0, and Amaral laid the blame for Saturday’s defeat at the feet of the for- wards and midfielders. “From the defence up, it was a lack of effort,” he said. “They didn't do their job.” In other games, the Castlegar Dexter’s Dynamos went through the weekend with a pair of home ties, 1-1 against both Trail and Ross- land, running their record to 1-3-2. Dynamos coach Ed Chaves said.a softball tour- nament kept some players out of the lineup, the fifth straight game where he’s been without a full unit. Chaves believes that once players return from injuries and other commitments, the Dynamos will start to put some wins on the board. Both Castlegar teams head out on the road this weekend, as the Devils trav- el to Rossland while the Dy- namos go north to Nelson. Williams takes ball tourney ~ @ Local family has big weekend on the diamond NEWS STAFF A wise person once said “The family that plays togeth- er stays together.” Whoever uttered those words must eae had the Pakula family in mind. Led by father and city coun- cillor Bob, seven members of the family took to the field over the weekend and took home top spot in the 6th An- nual Castlegar Slo-Pitch tour- nament with a victory over 08. Playing for Williams Mov- ing, son Linus said there is a chemistry when the Pakula clan is on the field. “We’re a family team, and we play well together,” he said. The 23 team, double knock- out tournament featured 19 teams from the city’s two slo- pitch leagues, with the four others coming in from Cran- ' brook, Beaver Valley and as far away as Lumby. Williams went through to the final without a loss, await- ing the winner of the Amigos- NRS Realty match for a title opponent. Because of the double knockout format, the winner News photo by Jonathan Green Bob Pakula winds up for Williams Moving during annual slo- pitch tourmamant over the weekend. Pakula and six members of his family emerged victorious with a win over Amigos. of that game would need to beat Williams twice to win the tournament. Amigos took game one of the final, but Pakula said Williams roared back to win it all in game two, largely in part to'the fact that Amigos was playing in its seventh game of the day. NRS wound up in third, while the Beaver Pub was the eoriaas of the consolation fi- TheNUMBERS SLO-PITCH STANDINGS AS OF JUNE 7 RECREATIONAL 4 3 i Williams Moving Avenues EHS Dexters Pub Lions Head Dining Castlegar Import Centre Safeway 1 Pushovers Smokey Bears Kootenay Comfort Purnell Distributors N-OFaNNNA4F ©W+9000-440 Rookie Card 1984-85 $42 Suggested retail (SUBJECT TO CHANGE) Performance Autobody Orlando Vecchio's CIBC Classics RCMP Dominion Bridge Robson Fire Athletic Supporters Western Industrial Latecomers The Experience Banjo’s Pub Brewskis Bulletws CCC Commonwealth Bad Company ++2NNOK0NKNKHON@ MOOWOOONVOONANH SOL Gu Oba e es Ootischenia Fire 125 Mugs & Jugs 0 10 Ootischenia ? oO 10 Kokanee Kids Oo 13 COMPETITIVE LEAGUE T-Birds 1 Castlegar Realty 10 Woodland Park Shell 10 Clarke Trucking 6 Glacier Dairies 5 Amigos 5 Blueberry Creek 5 Big OTire 3 NRS Realty 2 =Omnavowan +~O4NW=000 co+0 After the big game meet your friends at the Karaoke — Wednesday JOHNNY WALKER Country/Rock Thursday, Friday & Saturday OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK AT 11 A.M. PUB LUNCHES 12:00 P.M.-10:00 P.M. ( Except Mondays) UPSTREAM FROM THE PROPOSED ROBON-CASTLEGAR BRIDGE Castlegar Sportscards Lakh BUY ¢ SELL ¢ TRADE 636-18th Street Castleaird Plaza Castlegar + 365-7556 With teams from the Robson Volunteer Fire De- partment (53.89), Robson School (54.99) and Cocoons Swim Chub (55.38) also competing, Huziak said an in- jection of youth was a definite factor in winning. “It didn’t hurt having a 15-year-old ringer,” he said. The relay followed the Otters’ mile swim-a-thon, | which saw 18 of the club’s 22 members swim 88 laps for a mile, raising $508 in the process. | The Otters head to Nelson for a swim meet this weekend. ; S Castlegar police swim to fourth straight victory in Robson River Otters’ annual celebrity relay NEWS STAFF As far as the local police are concerned, the letter M in RCMP might just as well stand for Marine. For the fourth year in a row, members of the Castlegar RCMP walked into the Robson River Ot- ters celebrity relay and swam away with first place. Comprised of Consts. Garth Huziak, Blair Imrie and Eileen Scholten, as well as Imrie’s daughter Jill, the RCMP team finished the race in a time of 46.26 seconds, followed by teachers from Kinnaird Middle School at 49.11 Team spokesperson Huziak said there was no elaborate game plan to Sunday’s successful title de- fence. “Luck. Pure and simple,” he said. “We've managed to squeak it out four years in a row.” Castlegar Devils’ Dale Fitch gets ready to put the ball back in play. His efforts-were in vain, though, as the Devils lost 1-0 to Nelson Savoy.